HomeService AreasWesley ChapelStorm Damage Electrical Repair
Storm Damage Electrical Repair in Wesley Chapel, FL
Wiring, Panels, and Devices Tested After a Lightning Strike|Licensed & Insured, EC13011268
List what stopped working and which breakers tripped.
A storm cell crosses Wesley Chapel on a summer afternoon; one strike lands close enough to rattle the windows, and afterward the internet is down, and half the bedroom outlets are out. The state's climate office puts this side of the peninsula at more than 80 thunderstorm days a year.
Call (352) 251-2795, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., or send a request online. Calls after hours are returned the next business day.
After a Strike
What Gets Tested After a Lightning Strike
Lightning current can get into a house through its service, its grounding, or any wire that runs outdoors.
| Part of the house | What a strike can do to it | How it's tested |
|---|---|---|
| Service and grounding | Burn or loosen the connections at the meter base, the main bonding point, and the ground rod | Connections inspected and tightened, and the grounding path checked for continuity |
| Main panel and breakers | Pit the bus, weaken a breaker's trip mechanism, and destroy the circuit boards inside arc-fault and GFCI breakers | Cover off to look at the bus and wiring, voltage measured on both legs, and each electronic breaker run through its test button |
| Cable in the attic and walls | Break down the insulation between conductors where no one can see it | Insulation resistance can be tested on an affected circuit, with the breaker off and everything unplugged |
| Receptacles, switches, and dimmers | Scorch a device or kill the electronics in GFCI receptacles, dimmers, and smart switches | GFCIs tripped and reset with a tester, and scorched or dead devices opened and replaced |
| Hardwired equipment | Take out the controls in an air conditioner, a water heater, a pool pump, or a hardwired smoke alarm | Voltage measured at the disconnect or junction box feeding each one |
After a strike, before anything else:
Do not stay inside if you smell smoke or burning, or see scorching on a ceiling, wall, or outlet. Get everyone out and call 911.
Do not keep resetting a breaker that tripped during the storm. Leave it off.
August 2026
What the August 2026 Apartment Strike Showed About Wiring
On Thursday, August 20, 2026, shortly after 3 p.m., lightning struck an apartment building in Wesley Chapel and started a fire in its roof. Pasco County Fire Rescue confirmed the cause through weather reports, doorbell camera footage, and the State Fire Marshal's Office. Officials reported no injuries to residents or firefighters.
At a county commission workshop the following month, the fire chief said the strike knocked out the alarm panels in three buildings at once and severed the wiring outright. A strike can do the same kind of thing in a house on a smaller scale: its damage isn't confined to the spot that scorched or the device that quit. It follows the wiring and can end at equipment on the far side of the building.
We don't install or service fire alarm systems.
Lightning hit a tree in the yard, not the house. Which circuits should we worry about?
One breaker tripped during the storm and won't reset. Is the breaker bad?
Order and permit
Why the Check Starts at the Meter
Every reading taken inside the house depends on a sound neutral and ground, so the service and grounding connections are tested first. The panel is next because a breaker with a damaged trip mechanism can't be trusted to protect the circuit behind it. Cable follows, and devices and equipment come last, since a receptacle can only be judged once the wire feeding it has passed.
Repairs under a Pasco County permit
A repair that replaces a panel, service equipment, or a run of cable goes under a Pasco County electrical permit. The county's residential electrical application asks whether the permit is for reconstruction due to storm damage, and a strike repair fits that description. We apply for the permit and schedule the county's inspection, and someone needs to be home to let the inspector in.
Billing
A Visit After a Strike Is Billed as a Repair Visit
Repair and troubleshooting visits are billed by the hour from arrival: $100 residential, $150 commercial, one-hour minimum, then half-hour increments, plus materials. No trip charge and no service fee. No hidden fees: the 3.5% surcharge on card and ACH payments is listed in our terms.
Replacing a panel, service equipment, or cable is quoted before the work starts.
Warranty terms after a strike repair
03If something we installed fails because of our workmanship within 30 days of completion, we waive the hourly labor to put it right. Materials Kennedy Electric purchases for your job carry the manufacturer's one-year warranty. To replace defective materials we supplied, or materials damaged by storm, flood, fire, or other acts of God, we charge a reduced warranty labor rate of $50 an hour residential and $75 an hour commercial. The warranty does not cover materials not purchased by Kennedy Electric, work performed by the customer, or materials the customer purchased or damaged. Our warranty terms are printed on the estimate, the invoice, and the receipt, and the product boxes stay with you so you can register each product with its manufacturer.
Reviews
Verdicts From People Who Hired Us
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Contact us
Lightning Strike Repairs for Wesley Chapel Homes
Send the address and say whether the strike hit the house or landed in the yard. Our office will call you back during business hours.